Then and Now
by lostanddistracted
Summary: A little time travel goes a long way in the making of a bond between two people.


**Hello, long time no read. I know that I should probably be working on my other stories - one of which I am considering rewriting part of the latest chapter. Anyway. This is something a little different so try not to be too harsh. Thanks :) Also, forgive me for any mistakes. No one's perfect.**

**As always, Read, Review, and Enjoy**

**PS: Bleach does not belong to me. On with the story!**

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Byakuya was training like usual when there was a large crash not too far from him. He ran over, practice sword in hand and took his stance, waiting for the dust to clear. When it did, Byakuya couldn't believe what he saw. It was a boy, probably only a little older than him. He was lying on his side, his black robes cut up, and was holding a long black sword.

"He's a shinigami." Byakuya's eyes widened as he stared at the unmoving body. Even though he'd been taught differently, Byakuya jumped down into the crater sized hole and walked over to the teen, sword still raised. When the teen still didn't move, he bent down and checked for a pulse and sighed. He was still alive at least. The shinigami groaned and Byakuya jumped up and away from him. Suddenly he could hear his name and saw his grandfather at the top of the crater.

"Get the boy and restrain him." The servants quickly did as they were told. The older man then looked down at him and Byakuya bristled slightly. Was it so wrong for him to make sure that he was alive? Upon being lifted up, the teen groaned and when one of them went to grab his sword, Byakuya saw his hand clench tightly around it. Even though he was unconscious he was determined not to let it go. Byakuya smiled slightly. That was the kind of shinigami he was going to be; one that never relinquished his sword for any reason.

A couple hours later, Byakuya happened by the room where the teenager lay. His grandfather had conceded to the idea of only a simple binding spell considering the boy was too injured to be a real problem. His coat had been removed and Byakuya could see the bandages that their servants had applied were bloody again, but not nearly as much as before. He seemed to be sleeping rather peacefully considering how much pain he must have been in. Byakuya crept closer, trying to keep quiet enough so as not to wake him. The teen's body had been washed free of blood once his grandfather had seen his state and without all the blood and dirt that had covered him Byakuya could finally see what he looked like. Steel gray eyes widened at what he saw; long bright orange hair that fell down his back and a pretty face, tanned skin and a lean trimmed body. Though unwanted, a slight blush crept across his face but he couldn't help it, the boy was attractive. As he closed his eyes fighting down the slight reddening of his cheeks, Byakuya didn't notice that the other teen had stirred.

"You are a Kuchiki. This is nothing to you. Control your emotions. Don't show weakness." He breathed his grandfather's words as quiet whispers under his breath, his fists clenched on his legs.

"Do you always talk to yourself?" Byakuya's eyes snapped wide open and he looked down into warm, albeit a bit dazed, brown ones. When had he woken up? The teen gave a light smirk up at him before turning back to look up at the ceiling.

"Where am I?"

"You-you're at the Kuchiki Manor in Soul Society." Byakuya cleared his throat and cursed the small stutter that had adorned his words.

"The Kuchiki manor? Why am I here?" He scrunched his eyebrows and looked back over at the small noble who knitted his own eyebrows in return.

"You came crashing into the courtyard while I was training."

"Then you're a Kuchiki," he was beginning to be able to talk more normally Byakuya noted, although he wasn't sure if it was a good thing. While the gravelly tone marking a sore throat had disappeared, it left a warm, light tone behind. It was a nice voice and one that while he was not really opposed to, Byakuya wasn't sure was the best right now considering he had just gotten over his reaction to the teen's appearance.

"Yes, I am Byakuya Kuchiki."

"Byakuya?" It was like the teen recognized his name. Not because he was a noble but as if he knew him personally. If he simply recognized the name as that of a person from one of the four noble houses, even if he was dazed, he would have said his full name, not just his first and not with an almost fond smirk playing on his features.

"Who are you?" The teen just leaned back and closed his eyes.

"Ichigo Kurosaki." With that the teen drifted back into unconsciousness leaving Byakuya alone with his thoughts. It was strange talking with Ichigo, so informal, but maybe the teen was still really out of it. Byakuya cocked his head and stared down at his long orange hair. He'd never seen anything like it. Having that color hair was weird in and of itself, but it seemed to fit him. It matched the warm aura that seemed to roll off of him in waves. Out of curiosity he reached down and touched his hair and when Ichigo didn't move grabbed a small section and ran his fingers through it. It was soft. Byakuya ran his hands through it a couple more times, smiling slightly, when he heard the door open behind him. He instantly let go and jumped up, turning to face his grandfather.

"Grandfather, I was just," he couldn't finish. The look in the old man's eyes said enough. Byakuya lowered his head and walked out of the room, giving him the customary farewell as he did. Ginrei watched the smaller noble leave and then looked into the room at the unexpected visitor. He couldn't deny that he was interested in the teen but it seemed that Byakuya had taken a different and rather uncharacteristic sort of interest in him. What his grandson didn't know was that he had been standing there for the entire conversation. Ginrei looked down at the new teen questioningly and a tad suspicious.

"Ichigo Kurosaki, hmm?" He then walked away to meet up with his grandson. "You shall definitely be one to keep a close eye on."

Byakuya wandered by the room Ichigo had been resting in subconsciously. He had done his best to keep the teen from invading his thoughts around his grandfather, though that didn't stop him from coming to mind. Raising his head, the noble gasped when he saw the other teen outside looking out over one of the gardens that surrounded the manor. Ichigo was still wrapped in bandages and had his shihakusho coat slung over his shoulders but seemed to be in a lot less pain than he had when he'd come crashing into Byakuya's life – literally. The floor squeaked slightly as he shifted. Byakuya blushed slightly and turned his head away as Ichigo looked over at him.

"Hey," he greeted informally.

"Hello. You seem to be feeling better," Byakuya stated, trying his best – and somewhat succeeding – at controlling his blush. Ichigo smiled, although it was more of a smirk, and his eyes lost a little of their fierce edge.

"Yeah, thanks for that." The bright haired teen leaned against one of the porch posts and looked back at the blooming sakura trees. "It's so weird here," he huffed. Byakuya quickly smoothed out his quirked eyebrow before questioning the teen.

"It's nothing like where I'm from. It's too calm here. I feel like someone going to jump out of nowhere and attack me. Speaking of which," he said turning a questioning, slightly suspicious look at the noble. "Where is Zangetsu?" It didn't click immediately for what he meant to Byakuya. _Moon Cutter? What is that?_ Then he remembered his grandfather explaining the nature of the zanpaktou to him and thinking that they had some strange names.

"You mean your sword?" Ichigo nodded in confirmation, his eyes slightly narrowing. "It's in a room on the other side of the building." Byakuya had to refrain from shriking slightly under the accusatory glare Ichigo sent his way. It honestly wasn't his fault. His grandfather was the head of the clan and the one with all the power.

Eventually the two tracked down Ginrei, after a bit of stalling on Byakuya's part, and were fortunate enough to retrieve Ichigo's zanpaktou. The young noble watched as Ichigo grabbed the blade and gave a small smile to the sword, as if he'd just been reunited with an old friend. It made his heart skip a beat but the raven brushed it off without much thought. Turning to look at him, Ichigo asked Byakuya a question that the noble had never seen coming.

"You want to spar?"

Ichigo had been staying at the manor for about a month. It hadn't taken the two very long to become friends and Byakuya was thrilled, though he didn't show it much and most definitely not around his grandfather. He was walking mindlessly through one the manor's extensive gardens, every once in a while gazing up at the sakura trees.

"Byakuya," snapped out of his thoughts, the noble looked over his shoulder at his grandmother who was walking closer to him. She stopped and stared at him before continuing. "Do you love him?" Byakuya stared up at her slightly wide-eyed.

"Love whom?" The old woman shook her head.

"Do not play stupid Byakuya, it is unfitting of a noble." The boy just dropped his head a little and the graying woman walked closer harboring a small smile. "I know that you kissed him when you went out that day two weeks ago." Byakuya's head snapped up at her, his eyes wide with fear that she knew about what happened that day at the lake.

"Please don't tell Grandfather," he pleaded. His grandmother looked down at him. She wouldn't tell on him, even to her own husband, not when he seemed to care so deeply about the other teen. There was just one question she needed an answer to.

"Then answer me this one question. Do you love him or are you in love with what he represents? That unrestrained and unburdened freedom and the impulsive and expressive nature that he exhibits." She elaborated upon seeing his confused look. Byakuya was about to answer when he stopped himself and thought about it. He had thoroughly believed that he envious and in love with the orange-haired teen's bold, brazen, unrestrained nature. It felt to him like watching a bird flying in the sky while he was the one trapped in a cage on the ground. But was that the only thing he loved about Ichigo? As he began thinking back, Byakuya realized that some of his favorite moments had been when he was training with the other teen or just relaxing, talking like normal teenagers would, no fancy titles or overly polite language with carefully chosen words. And then there was their trip to the lake.

Ichigo had taken to disappearing every so often when Byakuya had to deal with nobility issues and it worried him. The trips started getting longer and longer until soon Byakuya would be waiting for him to come back. There was one time, however, that he didn't have to attend one of the meetings so instead he followed the orange haired teen and he led him to a lake. It was completely surrounded by forest with the sun seeping through the canopy. He stayed behind the tree line, masking his spiritual pressure as best he could. Luckily Ichigo had never been good at picking up on it so he was fairly safe from being spotted. The teen just stood on the shore looking out over the water without really focusing on anything. He stayed like that for a while and then sighed and took off his shirt. Byakuya stared at him, he knew that Ichigo was attractive and strong but he didn't know he was in that good of shape. Before he could get a good look, though, Ichigo climbed up on a rock and dove into the water. Completely forgetting that he was supposed to stay hidden, Byakuya ran over to the water's edge and searched for him frantically.

"Ichigo!" He yelled as soon as he saw an orange head pop out of the water. The teen turned to look at him with scrunched eyebrows.

"Byakuya?" Ichigo said, swimming closer. "What are you doing here? I thought you had a meeting." He was now standing in about waist high water and stared up at the small noble curiously. It surprised him to see Byakuya so frazzled. Even though he was more expressive in this time period than in his, the slightly panicked expression was still very out of place.

"I-I didn't have to go." He said. The noble was still inspecting his friend, trying to see if he was hurt anywhere or if something was wrong, but Ichigo seemed perfectly fine. It was strange. There weren't many bodies of water in soul society which consequently meant that not many people knew how to swim.

"Is this what you've been leaving for?" Ichigo raised a hand to the back of his head. Originally he hadn't planned to be out any longer than how long Byakuya's meetings lasted but he soon found himself losing track of time and staying out for hours on end.

"Yeah, sorry about that. My dad used to take my sisters and me to the beach a lot during the summer. I guess I just missed it." He turned to look back out at the lake before walking up to Byakuya. "Look, I didn't mean to make you worry or whatever. I just needed time to think. But since you're here I can't really do that anymore. So," he leaned in towards Byakuya and the noble thought he might tell him that he wanted to be alone and that he should leave. Byakuya nodded and looked at the ground.

"I understand. I'll leave you to – " Suddenly his hair fell around his shoulders and Ichigo's hand ran along his cheek.

"So, I'll just think about the past some other time." Ichigo then stepped backwards into the water having tied Byakuya's hair ribbon around his wrist. The small noble just stared after him and noticed the playful, mischievous glint in the older boy's eyes. He was daring him to come after him and Byakuya would have if he'd been wearing his training uniform. However he wasn't and instead had on a simple yukata. Nothing too expensive but drenching it by swimming the in the middle of a lake was definitely not something that his grandfather would approve of. Ichigo didn't seem to be of the same opinion though.

"You coming Byakuya?" He gave him a smirk and swam towards him a little. Byakuya knew that the teen was teasing him and trying to provoke him into the water and God dammit it was working. The raven removed his shoes, walked towards the water and took a couple steps in. He could feel the bottom part of his yukata getting wet but didn't seem to really mind. The water was warm and felt good. Byakuya looked up and saw that Ichigo was still baiting him and tried holding back a smile that ultimately came out in the end. He couldn't help it. The orange haired teen had a sort of reckless abandon that allowed him to do anything. A trait that Byakuya envied him for. Ichigo stood up in front of him. Byakuya was in barely up to his knees and it didn't seem that he was going to move much more.

"Are you going to come in or not?" He taunted. It knocked Byakuya out of his thoughts and he met the other's taunting look with one of his own and pushed Ichigo back into the water. Unfortunately Ichigo grabbed him and pulled him down as well. Byakuya gasped as he was completely drenched. He turned around to look at the equally drenched Ichigo and watched how the teen's hair floated around him in the water. With a distant gaze, he unconsciously reached out and grabbed a piece and began running his hand through it again, not even realizing that Ichigo had taken to watching him while he did.

This sort of Byakuya confused him. In his time Byakuya was a cold, emotionless statue of a noble that cared solely for the clan's honor and pride and the upholding of the law. However this younger version seemed much more expressive and full of life. Ichigo couldn't figure out what had caused him to shut all of his emotions away. Had it really all been because of Hisana's death? He turned causing his hair to slip through the young Byakuya's fingers and the noble looked up at him curiously.

"You're not what I expected," the noble cocked his head slightly, still confused. "I figured you would be stiff and ridged, caring only about your clan, but you're not like that at all." Byakuya could feel his eyes narrow slightly. Was he saying he didn't act like a noble and had no pride in being a Kuchiki?

"I – "

"I'm glad. I like you better this way." Ichigo gave him a small smile before ducking underwater, thankfully because Byakuya had begun to blush slightly. He liked him the way he was. Ichigo _liked_ him even though he didn't act like what his grandfather had told he was proper for a noble around him. It meant that he liked him for who he was and not just because he was a Kuchiki. His blush deepened at the thought and he didn't move. Ichigo had swum out a little bit but upon noticing that the noble hadn't followed him turned back. Surprisingly Byakuya hadn't noticed him as he came up right behind him. Noticing the noble's red-tinted face, Ichigo raised an eyebrow and wondered what he was thinking about. However, Byakuya soon snapped out of it and the twin swam in the lake for a bit, enjoying the relaxed atmosphere.

Ichigo was lying on his back on the warm sand, the water lapping up around his ankles. Byakuya walked up to him wearing his shirt. Since the small noble had been completely drenched his clothes were soaking wet as well so Ichigo had let him put on his shirt so that he could dry off a little. He stared down at the content orange haired teen sadly, wishing he could be more like him.

"Ichigo."

"Hmm?" The teen didn't open his eyes.

"Where are you going to go?" At that he did and propped himself up. 'Where was he going to go'? Ichigo stared up at him with scrunched eyebrows.

"I wasn't planning on going anywhere."

"But you're going to have to leave at some point," the noble pointed out. Byakuya didn't want his friend to leave. Ichigo was one of the few he had. The other teen sighed and stood up, brushing some of the sand off of him.

"I don't know. Hopefully home at some point." He had walked over to a group of rocks and sighed again before sitting on one to face the noble. "Why? Do you want me to leave?"

"No!" Byakuya exclaimed before quickly quieting his voice again. "I just don't want you to disappear one day and not come back." The noble wouldn't meet his eyes and Ichigo just stared at him with softened ones. He seemed so vulnerable, nothing like the strong, arrogant captain he knew, but as if his leaving would really hurt him.

"Well, for the moment I don't really have anywhere else to go, so it seems like you're stuck with me for a while longer." Byakuya looked up at him and a small smile crossed his lips as he walked closer until he stood right in front of him. He reached up and put his hands on the taller teen's cheek and neck and smiled up at him lovingly, completely shocking Ichigo.

"I can deal with that." Before he could recover from his shock Ichigo was thrown a bigger one as the noble leaned in and kissed him. His brain completely short circuited. He couldn't believe it; the younger version of the noble who, in his time, could barely stand to be in the same room as him had just kissed him. Byakuya pulled away slightly but it wasn't long before he leaned in again and for some God unknown reason Ichigo kissed him back. Once he recovered as much as he could in the situation, Ichigo found that the small noble tasted kind of like cherry blossoms which made him laugh against the noble's lips as he imagined thousands of deadly pink petals floating through the air. And even though it surprised him, Ichigo didn't stop the kiss.

Byakuya felt the orange haired teen return his kiss and grew a little giddy inside, not that he would ever admit it. There had been lingering doubts in his mind about how Ichigo would react but he hadn't pushed him away at all. Actually, Ichigo raised a hand to the noble's waist and pulled him closer. Byakuya felt like he could melt. He had never been loved in anything more than a familial way and hadn't loved anyone romantically either. Not until Ichigo came crashing into his life. The teen was so extravagant, always surprising him and being so passionate in everything he did. Byakuya loved that about him; loved the other teen's freedom to be himself. Even after pulling away they must have stayed like that for some time, Byakuya touching his neck and cheek while been held close by Ichigo's arm. The arm then fell from his waist and Ichigo lowered his gaze.

_'We should probably head back. Your family will be looking for you.'_

Byakuya blushed as he remembered that day before looking back up at his still waiting grandmother. He knew that it wasn't just Ichigo's freedom and vivaciousness that he loved. Ichigo had managed to worm his way into his heart and Byakuya found he didn't mind him being there. He lowered his head so that he wouldn't have to see her reaction when he answered.

"No, it's not just what he has. I care about him as well." The older woman just smiled at him. She'd had a feeling that it wasn't just the boy's freedom that Byakuya loved but needed to hear it from him and have the boy hear it for himself. After nodding her head she opened her eyes and looked down at him lovingly.

"Thank you for answering my question. And don't worry, I won't tell your grandfather." Byakuya looked back up at her and smiled slightly; he knew she would stick to her word.

Another week had passed since his talk with his grandmother and once again Byakuya found himself at the edge of the very same lake. He stared into the water and watched as it rippled and lapped at his feet. When he felt the familiar warm spiritual pressure he turned and narrowed his eyes – visible only to those who knew him well, Ichigo being one of them.

"What took you so long?" Ichigo smirked down at the raven as he walked closer to him.

"Afraid I wasn't going to show?" He teased but his eyes softened slightly when he noticed that Byakuya had turned to face away from him, his cheeks tainted ever so slightly. Sitting beside him, Ichigo brushed some stray strands of his silky black hair away from his face. Byakuya looked up at him with surprisingly expressive eyes which the orange haired teen vastly preferred over the stoic gray from his time.

"Of course I came. Just had a lot on my mind, that's all." Ichigo wrapped his arm around the smaller teen's shoulders and Byakuya relaxed slightly into him. It was ridiculous how much the single boy did to him; how much he affected him. The young Kuchiki noble never felt the need to "be a noble" around him; Ichigo wasn't the type of person to care. Turning into him, Byakuya leaned up slightly and brushed his lips across Ichigo's, enjoying his slight surprise before it was replaced with another teasing smirk. The bright haired teen ruffled his usually flawless hair before capturing his lips.

Byakuya loved it, loved the kiss, loved him. He loved Ichigo; he had admitted it. Never before had he felt the same about someone else; never wanted to stay with someone and be with them no matter what. It didn't matter to him that Ichigo was a man, he didn't care. There was only one thing he wanted to know and that was how Ichigo felt about him. So he reluctantly pulled away from the other teen who looked at him curiously; Byakuya initiated but hardly ever broke a kiss. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath trying to prepare himself for what he was about to say.

"Stay with me." Ichigo raised an eyebrow at him when Byakuya glanced at him and took another deep breath before whispering out the next words. "I love you, so stay with me. Don't leave." To say he was shocked would be an understatement; Ichigo didn't know what to do. He had just been confessed to by the same person who in his time could hardly stand him. What was he supposed to think? Byakuya stared at him with worried, expectant eyes that tugged at his heart. He really did care deeply about the younger version of the squad six captain but… Not wanting to give him an answer quite yet, Ichigo raised a hand to the young noble's face, watching as he turned into his hand. This Byakuya was so expressive, so vulnerable, so warm and alive. He didn't want to hurt him but knew he couldn't stay forever.

"I can't stay forever. I'll have to go home eventually." Byakuya's eyes widened which only pulled more at his heartstrings. Ichigo leaned in and kissed him softly. "I love you Byakuya so don't ever change. Stay just like this. I'll have to leave, but we will meet again, I promise." With that he pulled the raven into him and kissed him deeply. He rolled them over so that Byakuya was lying on the soft sand and his long hair fell in a curtain around them, closing them off from the outside world.

Byakuya couldn't decide if he was happy or sad. Ichigo had said he loved him but also that he couldn't stay; that he had to go home. He didn't want the teen to leave and held tight to him, relishing the feeling of his warm, soft lips against his.

What neither knew was that their time together would soon be over.

Byakuya, now the 28th head of the Kuchiki clan, stood there in front of the man he had fallen for as a child. His bright orange hair was shorter and he was scowling but it was him. There wasn't a doubt in his mind that the teen standing before him was Ichigo Kurosaki, the man he had fallen in love with all those years ago.

He'd nearly given up on seeing him again but some small part of him kept hoping that the teen would keep his word and there he stood; ready to protect the noble's sister, seemingly having forgotten about him completely. His heart tightened a bit but it didn't show through his calm, indifferent exterior; nothing had shown through it for more than a century.

"I won't let you take her!"

"Ichigo Kurosaki," the noble replied before shunpoing before him, grabbing the younger male, and taking him far from his lieutenant and sister, neither being able to follow his movements. Once they stopped, Ichigo tried getting his bearings and gripped his sword tightly but before he could do anything Byakuya was before him with a hand tenderly cupping his cheek. Then without another word, leaned in and kissed him softly.

"You made me wait far too long." When he pulled back Ichigo stared up at him and something dawned on him.

"Byakuya."


End file.
